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HBO, Facebook Plan Social Integration During 'True Blood' Marathon

The True to the End Marathon on HBO2 starts Monday, June 16.

Facebook has combed through more than six years of posts, likes and comments about vampire drama True Blood to bring an extensive social integration to HBO's weeklong True to the End Marathon.

Beginning June 16, HBO2 will air a full season of True Blood every night in the lead up to the long-running show's seventh and final season, which premieres June 22 at 9 p.m. on HBO. Each night during the marathon, actor Michael McMillian, who starred in the series as Rev. Steve Newlin, will host a themed segment that highlights data culled by Facebook, with the help of social curation firm Arktan, such as the most popular True Blood villian and fans' favorite suitor for Sookie (Anna Paquin).

"The True to the End Marathon offers a unique opportunity to celebrate the contributions of a passionate fan base leading into the final season premiere," said HBO vp digital and social media Sabrina Caluori. "The partnership with Facebook provides us with the perfect data set to identify the themes and story points that matter most to Truebies."

True Blood has amassed more than 11 million Facebook fans, who have generated more than 844,000 comments on the show's social network page. Facebook fans who want to participate in the conversation during the marathon can use the hashtag #TrueToTheEnd. They also will be offered a look at an exclusive trailer on Friday, June 20, prior to the season premiere.

"Working with HBO in advance of the final season of True Blood was a great way to honor and engage the 11 million-plus fans who have connected with each other and this show on Facebook during the previous six seasons," said Sibyl Goldman, Facebook's head of entertainment partnerships. "We think the fans will be delighted to see factoids pulled from their Facebook activity about True Blood during the series marathon."